


things that go bump in the night

by bucketfulloffandom, Pikajimin



Category: Monsta X (Band), No.MERCY (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Vampire, M/M, Multi
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-10-11
Updated: 2016-10-25
Packaged: 2018-08-21 20:46:03
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,687
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8260034
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bucketfulloffandom/pseuds/bucketfulloffandom, https://archiveofourown.org/users/Pikajimin/pseuds/Pikajimin
Summary: Vampires are normal more or less, they go through things that normal humans go through like crushes, stress and stealing things no one wants anymore.





	1. cause baby i'm a dark star

   Yoonho can smell him in the art room. He’s not quite sure who he is, but he smells so damn good. He’s not even focusing on his painting like he should. Instead he follows the scent to the other classroom, but stops because the art appreciation class is about to start. He peeks over the wall and he knows exactly where to look. There's a guy sitting in the very back, staring at his notebook. The kid has his head down, and Yoonho can’t see his face but he smells so good.(He’s not used to his heightened senses.) He wants the guy. He claims dibs on the kid. 

   The professor walks by Yoonho, meaning he needs to go back to work. And by work he means drinking his second cup of coffee and staring at his canvas. The kid smells so good and it's distracting him. It gets unbearable to the point where he has to step outside. He grabs his coffee and walks out to the balcony.  He leans on the railing and takes a deep breathe. How long has it been since someone has smelled so good to him? He takes a sip of his coffee and takes in the morning air. 

   The scent of another vampire attacks him full force. The vampire is walking up the stairs. (They obviously don't know that this is an exit only door.) Once the vampire meets eyes with him, they flee and rush down the stairs. Yoonho’s claimed what's his and if someone crosses the line, he’s not afraid to hurt someone. 

   The door opens and students flood the stairs. He knows that class is over and the kid is coming his way. (Yoonho wants to get to know him.) The kid is getting closer. He looks at the guy as he walks out the door, schedule in hand and a confused look on his face. He clears his throat before trying to help the guy. 

“Are you lost?” Yoonho asks.

“A bit, I’m looking for the social science building,” the guy answers. 

“I can walk you there,” he says. 

“Are you sure? You don't have class?” the kid questions.  

“Not until eleven. I have time,” he answers.  

“Thank you so much!”  the brunette exclaims.  

   The first thing he really notices about the kid is that he’s cute, really cute. The second is that he smells really good, like the ocean on a warm summer day. He licks his lips only to taste the coffee from earlier. (He should ask the kid his name.) They walk down the stairs and Yoonho leads them towards the social science building.  

“What's your name, kid?” he asks. 

“Seokwon,” the kid answers. 

“Seokwon,” he repeats.  

“Yeah, Seokwon,” the brunette says softly.  

“What class are you taking that’s in the social science building?” Yoonho asks. 

“General Psych, nothing too hard,” Seokwon answers. 

    Yoonho hums as an answer.  Seokwon doesn’t say anything else. The brunette male hums as the walk. And Yoonho is curious is to what song it is. The walk to the social science building is relatively short, and Yoonho wishes he could stay beside Seokwon a little bit longer. 

“This is your stop,” he states.  

“Thank you,” Seokwon says. 

“No problem,” Yoonho answers.  

    Seokwon walks inside the building and his scent starts to fade, leaving Yoonho feeling empty. He stays there for a few seconds before walking back to the art building. His thoughts linger back to the brunette male. Yoonho is never the one to have a crush, but here he is crushing on a freshman. He shakes his head and keeps walking. The art room is almost empty when he gets back.

    But he can hear the murmuring from the next room and apparently some guy has been on the news for stealing sporks from the nursing home. He giggles at that thought. He knows that it’s Wonho. That guy has an obsession with stealing “vintage” things. He should probably go see the other man soon as well. He’s going to need feed soon. And by soon he means today, preferably now. He also needs to talk to Changkyun about humans. 

    He sits there and stares at his blank canvas, and feels uninspired. He doesn’t feel like working. This project is due by the end of the semester and he needs an A on this assignment. He runs a hand through his hair and groans. This painting is not going to get finished on its own as much as he wants it to. 

“Get to work lazy ass,” Kihyun says. 

“Go away,” he groans. 

“That painting is not going to get done on its own,” the elder male states. 

“I know. Don’t remind me,” he answers. 

“Anyway, I stopped by because you look like you are dying,” the elder says. 

“I am, slowly. This painting is killing me. Have you seen Changkyun around? I need to talk to him,” he says. 

“He should be on his way here. He’s probably running late,” the shorter male answers. 

    Kihyun leaves the room and Yoonho is just sitting there, in front of his easel, not working. He sighs. He needs to eat soon. Changkyun better hurry up or he’s going to snap someone’s neck, just to eat. Thoughts of eating are pushed to the back of his mind and Seokwon is floating around his mind. 

“Hey, Kihyun told me you needed to talk to me,” Changkyun says. 

“It’s about something  **_important,_ ** ” he states. 

“Oh- OH. Okay, let’s go discuss this somewhere else,” the blonde answers. 

“Can you take me to your place?” he asks. 

“Uh, yeah. I’ll drive you,” Changkyun answers. 

“Will it be fine if you just left like this?” Yoonho questions. 

“I’ll just tell her that you got sick and needed me to take you to the nurse’s or something,” the blonde says. 

   Yoonho starts to put his things up while Changkyun talks to the professor. He stuffs his paints in his locker and leaves his painting on the easel. He’ll probably stay at Wonho’s for the night or something. He just needs to eat first. Changkyun tells him that it’s all good and they walk out of the room and down the stairs. 

“Hey, Changkyun can I ask something serious?” he asks. 

“Yeah,” the blonde answers. 

“So say a person like me likes a person like you. I guess you can say I have a crush. What do I do?” Yoonho questions. 

“You have a crush? That’s hilarious! I have to tell Wonho!” Changkyun exclaims. 

“Shut up!” he yells.

    The walk to Changkyun’s car is filled with questions and not really getting answers. The blonde offers him no help only laughing at him and telling him that he wouldn’t be of any help. Yoonho punches him in the arm. “Quit or I’m not feeding you,” Changkyun jokes. He quits and they hop in the blonde’s car. Changkyun drives them to his and Wonho’s place. They don’t talk about his crush on Seokwon nor do they talk at all. Yoonho stares out the window and his mind wanders back to Seokwon. He wonders what the younger male is doing. He wonders if the younger male likes bubble tea or coffee. He wonders if Seokwon likes music or art even. 

“Hey we’re here,” Changkyun states. 

    He gets out of the car and follows the other male to his basement apartment. Nothing really has changed since last time he’s been there. It gives him a sense of familiarity and he likes it. This is the place where he spent a few months after he was turned. He can’t remember what happened after he turned, but he remembers waking up with a massive headache and scared. He remembers Wonho feeding him blood and Changkyun staying away from him. The only thing that is different is that there is more useless things and a scent that is not Changkyun’s. This scent is much more human, much more fresh, than the other male’s scent.  

“Did Wonho bring someone over?” he asks. 

“No, but he did steal again, a box of vhs tapes. Like he really needs it. He has so much shit it’s ridiculous,” the other male answers. 

    Yoonho hums as a reply. He looks around and there is more things here. He can’t believe Wonho steals stuff that no one needs. Changkyun comes back from the kitchen with a bag of blood and a straw and hands it to him. He takes a drink and scrunches his nose. He hates this so much, but he needs it to survive. What would Seokwon say when he tells him? Would the other male be disgusted by him? Or would the freshman be okay with it? He questions on whether or not telling the other male would benefit him. 

    He takes another sip and feels a bit better. He feels less stressed and more awake. He doesn’t feel hungry or tired any more. He quickly drinks the rest of his food and hopes for the best. The thought of Seokwon floats around in his mind. Would actually feeding on someone he loved make a difference? Would Seokwon let him do that? Then the thought of the freshman knowing that Yoonho is a vampire is unsettling. So many things can go wrong and probably will go wrong. He doesn’t know what he should do. He subconsciously rubs his neck with his hand and his palm grazes over the scars.  

“You should tell him, that you’re a vamp. I’m sure he’ll understand,” Changkyun states. 

“I doubt it,” he answers. 

“You never know. I was okay with it,” the other male answers. 

“Yeah, but you’re weird anyway so it doesn’t count,” he states. 

     The conversation ends after that. Changkyun tells him that he needs to get back to school. Which means that it’s time for Yoonho to leave. He should go home and work on some homework or paint, more than likely neither of the two. He leaves Changkyun and Wonho’s place and walks in the direction of the bus stop. He’s glad that there’s one that’s not too far. He sighs. It’s going to be a long semester. 

     Days of walking Seokwon to class becomes weeks and soon enough Seokwon is spending more time with him. Sometimes they eat lunch together and by “they” he means Seokwon. He always tells the brunette that he’s not hungry or that he already ate. But he can tell by the look on the freshman’s face that he is concerned even though nothing is wrong. (It’s not that Yoonho can’t eat human food, it’s just his stomach can’t filter it and he’ll end up throwing it back up. Coffee and tea are an exception and it’s just the way his new stomach is.) He’ll always have a small cup of coffee or tea with him whenever they are together. 

    Seokwon doesn’t say anything about it until now. They’re at the bubble tea shop, and Yoonho doesn’t order anything to eat or drink, claiming he already ate. (In which he did eat before he left for school. It’s just not the food that Seokwon eats.) Seokwon’s face drops and tells him that he’ll pay if money was a problem. It’s not a problem though and he tells him that. He’s not ready to tell the younger male that he’s a vampire and that eating human food will make him sick. (He doesn’t think he’ll ever be ready.) But he knows that he’ll have to tell Seokwon soon or later. 

“I’m not hungry. I already ate before I left this morning,” he answers. 

“Surely you must be hungry. You haven’t eaten since what this morning?” Seokwon asks. 

“I’m fine,” he answers. 

“You sure?” the younger questions. 

“Yeah. Don’t worry about it,” he says. 

    Yoonho knows that Seokwon is going to worry about. He subconsciously rubs his neck, palm grazing over the scars that made him what he is today. He gives the younger male a reassuring smile. And in hindsight everything is okay. 

    The ride back to the school is filled with the brunette singing whatever was playing on the radio. He falls for the younger male a little bit more. He wonders what if would be like lying next to the brunette as he sleeps. He imagines Seokwon’s chest heaving up and down, lightly, soft breathes and a heart that beats. He imagines kissing the brunette’s lips and cheeks, pressing chaste kisses on his crown and holding hands while they walk. 

“Yoonho, we’re back,” the younger states. 

    He’s pulled back to reality and enough they are in the parking lot of school. Seokwon looks at him with a concerned expression on his face. He knows that the younger male wants to ask more questions, but he doesn’t want to answer anymore. Yoonho sits there for a few minutes. He knows that telling Seokwon the reason why is important, that the younger has the right to know. If he was human, his heart would be beating right out of his chest and his lungs would constrict, struggling to breathe. But he’s not human, and it still affects him. It makes his thoughts swirl together and Seokwon’s sweet scent is not helping him. 

“I have to tell you something,” Yoonho blurts out. 

“Shoot,” the brunette says. 

“The reason why you don’t see me eat is because I’m a vampire,” he answers. 

“Oh,” the freshman says. 

“You--- you aren’t scared of me? Or disgusted with me” he stutters. 

“God! No Yoonho! Why would I be? You’re still the Yoonho that is nice and walks me to class,” the younger exclaims. 

   Yoonho rubs his neck out of habit. Seokwon touches his hand, moving it out of the way. Seokwon’s fingers touch his scars, it sends shivers down his spine. “Is that where they bit you?” the brunette asks. Yoonho hums out an answers, not trusting his voice. The brunette’s fingers graze the side of his neck as Seokwon pulls his hand away. 

“Is that why you won’t eat regular food? What about coffee or tea?” Seokwon asks. 

“Yes, and liquids pass right through me,” he answers. 

“How do you get your food?” the younger questions. 

“A friend has blood bags for me,” he says. 

“You don’t….” the brunette trails off. 

“Have a feeder? No, not every vampire is okay with it,” he replies. 

   Seokwon doesn’t say anything. The silence sits between them. Yoonho looks at the brunette, whose scent is calming him. He knows that if he wants to have a future with Seokwon that he’ll eventually have to tell the other male. Maybe one day he’ll be able to tell him what happened that day. But one day is not today. 

“I’m sorry,” Seokwon says softly. 

“Seokwon, it’s fine,” he answers. 

“You don’t have to tell me, if you don’t want to,” the younger says. 

“I will tell you someday, just not today. That’s another topic that I need to gain enough courage to talk about,” Yoonho replies. 

“We should get going,” Seokwon states. 

    Yoonho thinks it’s now or never. He already confessed that he’s a vampire. If he can do that then he can Seokwon that he likes him, no problem. He can tell the younger male that he likes him. He can do this, he thinks. 

“Wait, I need to tell you something else,” he says. 

“Yeah,” Seokwon questions. 

“I like you, a lot,” he says softly. 

“Yoonho,” the younger answers. 

   Yoonho doesn’t know what to do or what to expect. Seokwon can reject him. It feels like time has stopped. Yoonho closes his eyes and unconsciously rubs his neck. 

“This is a lot to take in,” Seokwon says.  

“I know. I know,” Yoonho answers.  

“I’m sorry,” the younger says. 

“It’s okay,” he whispers. 

“I’m not---I’m not rejecting you or anything,” the brunette stutters. 

“I’m not asking for a reply,” he says. 

   Which is true, Yoonho isn’t asking for an answer even though it would be nice. He just wants Seokwon to know that yes, he does like him and has feeling for him. (This is different for him. He can’t remember the last time that he actually had a crush on someone.) He honestly expected a rejection, but still he shouldn’t have expected much. He did confess a lot today. Seokwon deserves time to think, and Yoonho is okay with that.

“We should go,” he states. 

“Yeah,” Seokwon answers. 

    It takes a total of two days for Seokwon to give Yoonho a proper answer. The two of them are sitting at a small cafe, homework scattered on the table. Yoonho is explaining history to the younger male. Seokwon sets his pen down and stares at him. And he can sense that something has changed. “Yoonho,” Seokwon says. Yoonho hums as a reply. The younger male repeats his name and this time looks up from the notes. “Do you want to go on a date with me?” the brunette asks. He smiles brightly, fangs flashing as well. “Of course I will,” he answers. If he was human, his heart would be beating against his chest in delight and butterflies would flutter in his stomach. 

   Yoonho knows that eventually he will have to tell Seokwon about that day and talk to him more about vampires and things like that, but for now he’ll enjoy the normal things that he missed out as a human. He knows that eventually doesn’t have to be today, it can be tomorrow or a year or even two years. Seokwon told him that he doesn’t have to tell him if he didn’t want to, but he will because the younger male deserves to know. But for now, he’ll enjoy his time with Seokwon and not have to worry about it. He’ll push it to the back of his mind until the time comes and he hopes that it doesn’t change anything. 

   Seokwon smiles at him. The younger male has a tint of pink adorning his cheeks and Yoonho thinks he’s cute. And he tells the brunette that. Seokwon tells him to shut up and get back to homework. He laughs and goes back to work. “You’re pretty cute too,” Seokwon whispers. He nudges the brunette’s shin from under the table and smiles softly. The freshman tells him to study, but honestly he doesn’t want to. He just wants to talk to the younger male about things not relating to school. And call him cute all day. 


	2. the simple things

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Yoosu's life is weird in that way where it's no longer weird to him. Maybe to someone else, it would be—but for him, and for Minkyun? It's routine.

Yoosu has scars.

They litter his neck, some fresher, others fading, but they're all the same, all minute pinpricks, side-by-side in pairs—it's obvious what they are. Yoosu wishes they faded quicker. People in his class give him weird looks.

He's heard, mainly from Jooheon and Gunhee, that there's a couple rumors floating around about the origin of his scars; there's mostly mentions of one of those clinics where people volunteer to feed vampires, while a few others theorize that he’s being held captive by a powerful vampire and thus unable to tell anyone. A couple people pass hushed whispers of a possible undead lover.

Yoosu listens to the rumors and doesn't do much more rolls his eyes. He keeps careful track of them though, mainly to tell Minkyun the same night he hears them. It’s well worth it, to see the way the corner of Minkyun’s eyes crinkle when he giggles, fangs gleaming when he opens his mouth in a loud laugh at something particularly outrageous. (The hostage conspiracists come up with the wildest ideas.)

On this night, Minkyun laughs until the breath he doesn't actually need catches, and he clears his throat sheepishly, looking like he’d blush if he could. Yoosu raises an eyebrow, then taps a finger on the side of his neck.

“Hungry?” he asks.

Minkyun’s gaze darts away briefly, as it does every time. “I- yeah, I guess,” he replies, and clambers awkwardly into Yoosu’s lap. Yoosu steadies him with his hands clasped lightly around his forearms and waits until Minkyun is settled.

“Go ahead, whenever you're ready.”

Minkyun flashes him a grateful smile before ducking his head to nose along his neck, searching for an unmarked spot. When he finds it, he draws back a little first to meet Yoosu’s eyes again, only preparing to bite when Yoosu nods at him.

Yoosu winces, but the pain is bearable - he’s used to it, after the countless times they’ve done this. Minkyun drinks carefully in quiet gulps for a few moments, then pulls away, looking down as he wipes his mouth with the back of his hand. A faint smear of blood comes away on his pale skin.

“Hey,” Yoosu says, curling a finger under Minkyun’s chin. “Look at me.”

Minkyun does so hesitantly. Yoosu smiles lopsidedly at him.

“I’m glad I met you.”

If Minkyun could blush, he’d be bright red. “I-” His voice catches. “Me too.”

Yoosu rolls his eyes. Minkyun, suddenly seeming to remember their position, hastily moves himself off of Yoosu and back to where he’s made a comfortable depression in the couch. They sit in content silence for a while, until Yoosu glances at his phone and sighs, “I should probably get home. I’ve got, like, two quizzes and an exam tomorrow.”

“Oh, alright,” Minkyun murmurs, though he sounds reluctant. “Night. Good luck on your tests.”

Yoosu shoots him a grin, then proceeds to trip over his own shoes. Minkyun stifles a snort of laughter. “Yeah, I’ll, uh- fuck-” He barely keeps himself from losing his balance again. “I’ll see you tomorrow night?”

Minkyun hums affirmation. “See you.”

 

 

This night, Yoosu collapses on the couch with a long-suffering groan. Minkyun glances up from his book, brows furrowed. “What’s up?”

Yoosu covers his eyes with his arm, throwing his other arm out dramatically. It knocks Minkyun’s book from his hands, prompting a startled yelp from him. “I’m going to either murder my professors or kill myself.”

Minkyun looks rather alarmed. “What, why?”

“You get assigned two essays in two different classes and some bullshit project in art history and you’ll see what I mean.” Yoosu drags his hands down his face. “I mean, you’d think I’d be used to this by now - and I totally am - but that’s not going to stop me from complaining my ass off about it.”

A giggle escapes Minkyun. Yoosu side-eyes him. Minkyun smiles. “You’re funny.”

Yoosu sticks his tongue out at him, then looks away pointedly. “Well you’re dumb.”

“Probably still smarter than you,” Minkyun quips back. Despite his best efforts, Yoosu can’t keep a straight face. He can feel the smile coming on, and knows Minkyun sees it too. “See, you’re smiling because you know I’m right.”

And Yoosu can’t believe how quickly the conversation has devolved, because he responds with, “Am not.”

“Am too.”

“No, you’re wrong.”

“No, you’re in denial.”

They sit staring at each other for what feels like at least a minute, then, just as suddenly as they’d fallen silent, they burst out laughing. Yoosu’s heart swells, drinking in the high, clear sound of Minkyun’s laugh.

“God, we’re both idiots.”

Minkyun shrugs, shoulders still shaking slightly in amusement. “I guess you’re right.”

 

 

“So I went out for lunch with Hyungwon today,” Yoosu begins, pausing in the middle of making a disaster of a PB&J. From his spot perched cross-legged on the coffee table playing his 3DS, Minkyun raises an eyebrow. “And he was telling me about some weird shit that's been going on at his place.”

“Meaning?”

“Like, his old VHS tapes and shit vanishing. Not that he cares, really, but it's weird because his roommate couldn't care less about vintage crap and no one else has been in their place in weeks besides Minhyuk.” Yoosu squints at Minkyun. “You have any idea?”

Minkyun’s face scrunches up in thought, though his fingers don't pause on the DS touch screen. “No, not really,” he determines after a few moments. “Can't think of anything off the top of my head.”

“No, like, weird goblins that steal things from people, or supernatural beings that feed off Korean War veteran cigars? I don't know. It was on the news and everything. They're calling the dude ‘the Antique Bandit’, how stupid is that.” He snorts. “I changed the channel after that.”

Minkyun shrugs, focusing his attention back on his game. “Only goblins I know are the vamp fledglings in the sewers. Idiots are going to get staked one of these nights and it'll probably be another vamp who does it.”

“They're that bad, huh?”

“Awful.”

Yoosu finishes making his sandwich, and immediately takes a huge bite out of it, chewing obnoxiously. “What are you playing?”

“Pokémon.” Minkyun holds the DS up and flashes Yoosu the screen.

“Oh shit, is that the new one?” Yoosu hurries over with his sandwich to peek over Minkyun’s shoulder. “How'd you get it?”

“Borrowed it from a game store, where else,” Minkyun replies. Grinning cheekily, he adds, “Without the intention to give it back, of course.”

Yoosu fakes a horrified gasp. “I'm associating with a criminal, I can't believe it.”

Minkyun finishes off some poor kid’s last Pokémon, then offers the game to Yoosu. “You can play, if you want. It's all I've been doing since I woke up, really.”

“Oh, hell yeah.” Yoosu stuff the rest of his sandwich into his mouth and falls back on the couch with the 3DS in hand, Minkyun shuffling to sit next to him. “Fucking nice.”

A few minutes pass by as Yoosu wanders through tall grass, cursing every random encounter.

“Flying is weak against fighting, Yoosu,” Minkyun reminds him.

“Shut up, how am I supposed to remember that?” Yoosu grumbles. “Fucking- punch a bird, it'll probably die.”

Minkyun giggles. “Exactly.”

“This is bullshit.”

 

 

Tonight, it's Minkyun who has news.

“So, remember that Antique Bandit you asked about the other day?” he says once Yoosu’s settled in with his meal—today, some good old fashioned cup ramen. Yoosu nods. “Turns out it’s a vamp.”

Yoosu isn’t impressed. “What’s a vampire doing stealing people’s fine china?”

“He's- he's kinda old and decently powerful, but also really fucking bored I guess. He's got a human friend who goes to your school.”

“Wha- who?” Interest piqued, Yoosu leans in, suddenly all ears. “Wait, no, let me guess. Changkyun.”

Minkyun looks startled. “How'd you know?”

“Jooheon and Gunhee.” Yoosu smiles just at the thought of it. “They're the biggest gossips I know, and they tell me all the time how weird that Changkyun kid is. You can just tell with some people, you know?”

“Sure.”

“How'd you find out, though?” Yoosu asks.

Minkyun’s expression turns sheepish. “Ran into a friend while I was out getting air yesterday—Yoonho, I've mentioned him before, right?”

“The kid who got turned about the same time you did. He's the one pretending to be a regular freshman at uni, I know.” Yoosu smirks at that. “He's gone after one of his classmates, actually, it's hilarious.”

“He didn't tell me,” Minkyun says, evidently offended. “Anyways, yeah, he knows the culprit, stayed a while with him after he was turned. Says he's got a weird fascination with antique things.”

Yoosu would argue how little sense it all makes, but then again, he's eating instant ramen in the underground apartment of a half a decade old vampire who happens to be his boyfriend. There's a vampire in the arts program and a kid consorting with an undead antique thief. Nothing in his life really makes sense anymore.

So instead, he slurps down another mouthful of noodles and blurts, “You're the best, you know that?”

It's another one of those moments where Minkyun would be best-red if he could blush. “Why do you say that?”

“I don't know. Just wanted to let you know I love you.”

There's a warmth in him, when Minkyun cuddles up against Yoosu, like a gentle fire in the hearth on a chilly autumn night. It's not what you'd expect from a vampire, but Yoosu’s grown to cherish it.

Minkyun sighs, “Love you too.”

A fifty year old vampire and an all but washed-up college student in love, all tangled up with every other friendly undead being in the area. Who'd have thought.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i Struggled™ y'all. thanks for sticking with me. or barely tolerating me. one of those i guess. fukc


End file.
